Chapter 14.1

Translator: Kell | Editor: Weasalopes

Transport Preparations

Jill’s hands froze as she was cutting the pie with a knife .

「…Where’d you hear that?」

「Some people were talking about it . 」

「No, no, no, that’s impossible! Like I said before, Morgstad’s murder is highly classified information!」

「Apparently the culprit is a young girl . 」

「………」

This time Jill was speechless, her mouth agape .

「…Well?」

「I can’t say . 」

「Here’s the menu . What do you want to eat?」

「There are just some things that you can and cannot say . I can’t say any more as it would be a violation of confidentiality . 」

「What, you think I’m going to misuse the information?」

「I’m sorry…」

「…No, I should be the one apologizing . That wasn’t fair . You’re answering my questions out of goodwill . It would be awful if you were punished because of it . 」

All right, now what? Hikaru thought as he leaned back on his chair .

(If she’s not going to tell me any more, I just have to sneak into the mansion…)

「Why do you want to know? This is indeed big news, but you wouldn’t normally care about a Count being killed, right?」

「Because…」

「Hikaru-kun . I’m guessing you’re a son of a wealthy family who ran away from home on a whim and decided to become an adventurer so he could survive . Am I right?」

「…I suppose . Yeah, something like that . I don’t have any other means to survive . 」

That, and he didn’t really have a home to return to .

「Does your family have connections with Count Morgstad?」

「No . None at all . 」

「Then why do you care so much?」

I screwed up, Hikaru thought deep inside . Morgstad’s death was much more confidential than he imagined .

「My friend… went through a lot . 」

「…Your friend?」

「Yeah . You could say he was oppressed by Count Morgstad . So I want to know whether he’s alive or not . 」

「………」

Jill stared at Hikaru, studying him . He thought about staring back, then stopped . If I remember correctly, a person who lies does either of two things: First, they don’t look at the one they’re lying to – they can’t . Second is they try too hard to convince the other person that they’re not lying by staring back intently .

Hikaru looked her in the eyes for just a moment and gave a small nod . He then downed some water .

「 …I don’t feel any malice in your words . 」

Oh, right . Jill did mention being sensitive to the emotions that people hide . There was probably no need for him to pretend .

「It’s going to be public anyway so I guess I can tell you this… Three days from now, a certain someone will be transported to the royal capital . That’s all I can say about the matter . 」Jill said, exasperation in her voice .

A certain someone… the culprit . It’s that girl, all right . Three days from now… The fact that the Adventurers Guild know about that means…

「Don’t tell me… adventurers will be the convoy ? Why—」

Jill’s kept her attention on the food as if to say “I’m not telling you anything else” . She deftly cut the pie in bite-sized pieces and stuffed herself — each movement extremely smooth and precise like some professional craftsman .

There were knights in the Count’s mansion who are much higher-ranked than the common soldier . So why would they hire adventurers to be the convoy? There’s gotta be more to this…

In the meantime, the Twin Tornado Juice arrived, its container shaped like a round melon and made of metal, with two straws sticking out of it . Two straws .

「Here you go . 」

「…Hmm?」

「Come on . 」

「Wait, what? There’s two straws on this thing!」

「Yes . It’s called “twin” for a reason . 」

「No, no, no, no, no . 」

It’s a drink for couples! Stuff that cheesy lovebirds drink! Jill seemed to be embarrassed too as her cheeks turned red .

「I told you I’ve been wanting to try it, but I didn’t have anyone to drink it with!」

「You’ve got all those men after you . Just choose from any of them!」

「Like . I . Said . I can see their motives clearly!」

「Ah, makes sense . 」

Hikaru finally understood .

She sees me as someone completely harmless .

「All right . Let’s have a drink, then . But you go first . Once you’ve had enough, I’ll finish the rest . 」

「………」

「Don’t tell me you actually want us to drink it at the same time—」

「O-Of course not! Don’t be so full of yourself!」

Jill started sipping the drink, pulling it closer to her as if to take it all for herself .

「So good . Ugh, darn it!」

In the end, she finished it all on her own .

Money left: 1,430 gilans (+7,500+α)

Later that day – almost midnight .

A boy in a black outfit appeared in front of Count Morgstad’s residence . Hikaru . He left his cloak as it would only be a hindrance if it got caught in something . On his face was something he’d never worn before .

A mask .

Made out of thin, metallic plate, they were sold at the temple . Each mask was modelled after different famous gods – the Sun God, War God, Commerce God – and cost only ten gilans .

Hikaru bought a Sun God mask, dull silver in color with a sharp jawline, and thin eyebrows that stretched to the sides . The carving wasn’t deep so it was perfect for his face . It had holes on the eyes and nose, though Hikaru added another one on the mouth for him to breathe out of .

「All righty, then . I guess I just have to go through the front again . 」

Hikaru intended to save the girl . She showed him an escape route after he finished killing Morgstad . He had no idea why she did that .

「…I don’t like the idea of her being accused for the murder instead of me . 」

He had no idea what was going on behind the scenes . Even if he wanted to investigate the matter, he had no connections . Asking the guards directly would only bring suspicion on him . As a matter of fact, Hikaru sneaked into the guards’ station in town to eavesdrop but he came up empty . Most of their conversations were about alcohol, gambling, and women . They complained about their superiors as well .

「My legs feel like lead…」

He was exhausted . Hikaru wasn’t used to walking around for a whole day . While he wanted to add more points to his Stamina or Strength, he had none at the moment . But he did gain something . The girl wasn’t in the Public Safety Investigation Agency’s custody – an organization similar to the Japan police . She wasn’t in the guard’s station either . There was a high chance of her being kept inside the Count’s residence .

The front gate was locked, but the side entrance wasn’t . A guard stationed at the entrance didn’t notice Hikaru at all as he passed by . The last time he came here, it was raining . Today, the pale – a lot paler than on Earth – light of the moon shone on the mansion .

「Hm . 」

The front door, which he used last time to enter, was locked .

「…Of course . Someone was assassinated recently . Security will be a lot tighter . 」

Hikaru’s mouth curved into a grin .

「But my Stealth’s level has gotten higher as well . 」

He’s already set the class on his guild card to Stealth God: Darkness Wanderer . Hikaru circled the building . Wooden boards covered the windows . He would have to remove them if necessary and break the glass windows inside as they had bolts, albeit simple ones . As much as possible, though, he didn’t want to leave traces behind .

「…Wait, what’s that?」

Hikaru caught sight of a slightly-opened back door . The stream of light coming from within revealed a man and woman standing by it .

「Are you leaving already?」

「I need to go back to the capital once my mission is over . 」

「I’ll be lonely . 」

「I’m sorry . I’ll make sure to send you letters . 」

The man’s face wasn’t familiar to Hikaru, but judging by the uniform and the sword hanging from his waist, he was a knight . And the woman was a maid .

…Right . The knights in this place were hired by the Count against their will . As such, they really don’t have much motivation . But still you shouldn’t hit on the maids . That’s why the mansion’s owner got assassinated . You’re not doing your jobs properly .

Hikaru slowly walked past them and slipped inside through the open back door . As soon as he opened it, the sudden brightness from within caused the two of them to jump and run to the darkness . They probably thought someone was coming from inside . Hikaru was standing there, though, but they couldn’t see him .

Man, this Stealth God class really is incredible .

Inside he spotted a storage room with a kitchen beside it . Only a dim lamp was lit, with no one around . Hikaru steadily advanced forward . He didn’t need to worry about minor stuff with his Stealth on . His first stop was Count Morgstad’s room on the second floor .

The door was locked .

No good . I could make easy progress if I had Skills like Unlock or Trap Deactivate . Unfortunately, I didn’t see any of those in my Soul Board .

Either way he had no points to spend .

He pressed his ears on the wall but heard nothing . After checking to see no one was on the corridor besides him, he knocked on the door .

「…Guess no one’s inside . 」

There was no response . He then checked the next room . Empty . There was, however, someone in the next room .

A woman .